The Saint Louis University men’s basketball team defeated
the Marquette University Golden Eagles 58-54 last night at the
Savvis Center.

With the win, the Billikens improved to 13-9 overall and 6-5 in
Conference USA play, while the Golden Eagles fell to 13-9 overall
and 4-7 in C-USA games.

Marquette junior guard Travis Diener led the Golden Eagles to an
early lead, scoring on a variety of shots, including three-pointers
and numerous fade-away jumpers. After the Golden Eagles jumped out
to a 14-4 lead, the Billikens clawed their way back into the game,
closing the gap to 26-25 before the first half ended with Marquette
ahead 29-25.

SLU began the second half on an 8-0 run, capitalized by senior
forward Chris Sloan’s breakaway lay up, where he was
intentionally fouled by Marquette freshman guard Dameon Mason.
In addition to Sloan’s lay up, he was given two free throws,
which he converted to widen the gap to 33-29 in SLU’s
favor.

Marquette countered with a 7-0 run of their own, which began when
Diener, who led all scorers with 26 points, hit a
three-pointer.

After SLU junior Reggie Bryant knocked down his only three-pointer
of the night, bringing the Billikens within a point, Marquette
freshman Carlton Christian converted on the receiving end of an
alley-oop and Todd Townsend drilled a three to give the Golden
Eagles a 41-35 lead.

SLU came charging back as junior center Tom Frericks was able to
beat Marquette senior Terry Sanders twice to the hoop after
receiving passes in the paint, tying the score at 43-43. After
Billiken senior guard Josh Fisher converted a free throw, the
Billikens took a 49-45.

After Diener scored six of the game’s next seven points,
Marquette led 51-50, before Billiken sophomore guard Anthony Drejaj
drilled a shot from outside the three-point arc, giving the
Billikens a 53-51 lead.

Marquette countered when sophomore wing Steve Novak scored for the
first time since the first field goal of the game, also the only of
his eight three-point attempts to be good, to give the Golden
Eagles a 54-53 lead.

SLU took a lead they would no longer relinquish when Fisher
converted two free throws, giving his team a 55-54 lead.

Izik Ohanon later hit one of two from the charity stripe to widen
the lead to 56-54.

Marquette brought the ball down the court, trailing by two with 30
seconds remaining.

After an unsuccessful trip for the Eagles, Sloan added two more
free throws with seconds remaining to close the door on any
Marquette comeback.

“Needless to say, that is a very satisfying win,” SLU
head coach Brad Soderberg said after the game. “It’s
been awhile since SLU has beaten Marquette, so that was a monkey
off our back.”
After the game Soderberg went over to the SLU student section to
thank the students for their role in the outcome of the game.
“I thought they were awesome. It makes a difference when our
players see their fellow students supporting them,” Soderberg
said

SLU is next in action Saturday afternoon, on the road, against the
DePaul University Blue Demons in Chicago at 1 p.m.

The Billikens aim to exact revenge on DePaul for their win over SLU
last Wednesday at the Savvis Center. That Bills’ loss was a
particularly hard pill to swallow because the Billikens are
fighting with the Blue Demons for seeding in the conference
tournament and they were also once up in the game by as many as 21
points.

Daunting Rematch

Who: DePaul Blue Demons

When: Saturday 1 p.m.
Where: Chicago, Ill